Getting Started with Language Tree Online

Minimum Technical Requirements

Language Tree Online courses are web-based, so there is no software to download. Students and teachers will just need a computer or tablet with a robust Wi-Fi connection to the internet. Each student should have a headphone or earbuds with a microphone to listen to the video and audio clips without disturbing others and to do the self-recording exercises.

Tip:  If students are experiencing slow downloads, video stoppages, and other interruptions, the issue is probably due to bandwidth limitations.  Please speak with your school or district IT network administrator to see if bandwidth can be increased.

Mobile
The program's user interface adapts to the form factor of the device used.  Desktops, laptops, and tablets are ideal devices to access the program. However, if a student wants to use a mobile phone to access the program, we advise using the Moodle app for the best experience. They will need to download the app to their devices and use their login credentials to sign in.

Android Phones: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.moodle.moodlemobile&hl=en_AU

iPhones: https://apps.apple.com/au/app/moodle/id633359593

Browser and Browser Settings

  • All modern browsers are supported (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge, etc.)
  • Cookies and Javascript should be enabled
  • Pop-up blocking software may need to be disabled to properly access Moodle

Software/Browser Plug-ins

The teacher downloadables are in PDF format, so instructors will need a PDF reader to be installed either on the computer or browser.

Listening Device

Each student should have a headset or earbuds that plug into the computer or tablet. A microphone is needed only for recording exercises.

Computer Skills Needed

Students will need basic computer skills to take the online course. For example, your students should be able to:

  • Log in using provided credentials or through their Clever or ClassLink portal
  • Navigate to the designated module and lesson
  • Navigate to the next page
  • Play video and audio clips by clicking on the play icon
  • Increase or decrease the audio volume
  • Select an answer from a drop-down menu
  • Select an answer from multiple choices
  • Drag and drop phrases in the correct order using their mouse
  • Submit answers

We suggest you go over these tasks with your students before starting the assessment or lessons.

Student Log In

The following login instructions apply only for login from a web browser. If the Language Tree Online course can be accessed through the school portal (e.g., Clever or ClassLink) with single sign-on authentication, then the student would just click on the Language Tree Online application tile.


Navigation

Once logged in, the student can select the appropriate course module from the main menu. Click on the button to navigate to the module.

Note: The student can always get back to this main page by clicking on Home on the top left-hand side of the screen.

Starting Students on the Program

Our entry assessments are designed to inform you of specific language skill gaps that should be addressed. We highly recommend that you start your students on the Level 1 Entry Assessments before they begin working on the lessons. Only intermediate to advanced students should start with the Level 2 Assessment.

TIP: Try to allocate about a week to complete the Entry Assessments at the beginning of the school term and a week at the end of the term to complete the Exit Assessments.

  1. Start with having your students take all three of the ELD 1 Entry Assessments buckets in the following sequence:
    • Foundational Literacy Skills
    • Collaborative Listening & Speaking
    • Language Function & Construction
  2. If a student scores below 90% in any one of the 3 buckets, he or she should proceed with working on the lessons
  3. If a student scores 90% or higher on one or two of the modules, you may elect to have the student skip these module(s). However, it is always good practice for students to review and build confidence by working on modules even if they received a high score.
  4. If a student receives a score of 90% or better across all three ELD 1 modules, he or she should be ready for the higher rigor of Language Tree Online ELD Level 2.

After completing the lessons and practice assignments in the program, the student should take the Exit Assessments, which are designed to measure growth. Your students should only take the Exit Assessment bucket(s) for which they've also completed the lessons. For example, they would take the Language Function & Construction Exit Assessment if they have completed most of the lessons in the module.

Submitting Answers

Students should work through the exercises for each lesson. Once the exercises are completed, the student will need to submit his or her answers by following these steps:

  1. After the last question in a module, the student will see FINISH ATTEMPT at the bottom of the page. The student should click on FINISH ATTEMPT.
  2. The next page shows whether all the questions have been answered. This enables the student to verify that every question has been answered. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click SUBMIT ALL AND FINISH to submit the answers.
  3. The student will get a pop-up confirmation. The student needs to click SUBMIT ALL AND FINISH. Once the student clicks submit this final time, answers can no longer be changed.

It’s important that the student follows these three steps because if he or she simply clicks “Finish Attempt” (Step 1), answers will not be tracked in the reporting. 

  1. In order to proceed to the next lesson, the student needs to score 80% correct or higher. Students can re-attempt lesson exercises multiple times. The Entry and Exit Assessments, however, can only be attempted once.

Reporting: Assessment Results

Teachers can view the Entry and Exit Assessment scores for their class in the Grades section of the program.

  1. First, click on the ELD Level 1 or Level 2 Assessment module.
  2. Select Grades on the tab at the top.

On this tab, you will see the list of students in your class and the scores they received (out of 100%)  for each of the three language skills buckets.

The left column under each bucket will be the Entry Assessment scores, the middle column will be the scores for the Exit Assessment, and the last column (__total) is the percentage point improvement between the Entry and Assessment scores.

You can drill down to get more detail about a particular student’s performance in an assessment area. Click on the magnifying glass next to the score to get to a page similar to the one below. On the "Quiz Navigation" menu at the right, you'll see which questions were answered incorrectly as indicated by a red stripe.  You'll also see when this assessment was started and completed.

 

Teacher Resources: Downloadables and Lesson Progress Monitoring

The Teacher Resources section is where you can find the downloadable instructional routines for each lesson, monitoring tools, and useful resources for your classroom. To get to this page, go to the main menu and scroll toward the bottom of the page. Click on the Teacher Resources button.

 

Here, you can find corresponding downloadables for each lesson module, including American School Culture. The downloadables are instructional routines you can use for whole-class and small-group exercises to reinforce the new language skills.

 

 

 

The Teacher Resource page also features links to useful reports that let you monitor how students are progressing and also if intervention may be needed. Click on the appropriate link to get to the report on lesson module completion and lesson attempts for each student.

 

Lesson Attempts: Exercises for a lesson can be attempted multiple times in order to receive the minimum 80% score to go on to the next lesson. This report shows if any student required 3 or more attempts to complete a lesson. This would be a good indicator if intervention is needed with a student on a particular language skill or function.

Lesson Completion: This report shows which lessons have been completed by your students with a score of 80% or higher. Check to see if any students are falling behind on lesson completion goals.  You can also check to see the practice assignments that have been completed.

 

Practice Assignment Completion: This report shows the practice assignments which have been completed by each student. A blue check mark indicates that a practice assignment has been submitted by a teacher for review.

 

Reviewing Practice Assignments: Practice assignments are not automatically graded by the system because many of the activities contain open-ended questions.  However, you may review the student's work on the practice assignment and provide feedback. Learn how to access and review your student's work on the practice assignments by clicking here.